Major Averages Close Firmly In The Red But Off Worst Levels

(RTTNews) - After drifting lower over the course of morning trading on Wednesday, stocks saw some further downside following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement. A negative reaction to the Fed's statement weighed on the markets, although selling pressure remained relatively subdued.

While the Fed maintained the pace of its asset purchases at $85 billion a month as was widely expected, the accompanying statement was seen as less dovish than anticipated.

Biotechnology stocks turned in some of the market's worst performances on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 1.7 percent.

Within the biotech sector, Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX), and Incyte (INCY) posted notable losses.

Considerable weakness was also visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent loss posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. With the drop, the index pulled back off the four-month closing high set on Tuesday.

Tobacco, internet, and railroad stocks also came under pressure on the day, while gold stocks turned in a strong performance amid a modest increase by the price of the precious metal.

The major averages climbed off their worst levels of the day going into the close but remained stuck firmly in the red. The Dow fell 61.59 points or 0.4 percent to 15,618.76, the Nasdaq slid 21.72 points or 0.6 percent to 3,930.62 and the S&P 500 dropped 8.64 points or 0.5 percent to 1,763.31.

With the decreases on the day, the Dow and the S&P 500 pulled back off the record closing highs set in the previous session.